Presenting four of Malaysia's top private collectors and their dynamic collection of Malaysian artwork, BAZAAR observes the transnational nature of contemporary art, as seen from the strokes that speak of cultural identities.
Kuldip Aasmundsen
Internal Affair, 2012, Ali Nurazmal Yusoff, hangs in Kuldip Aasmundsen’s home
The Drowning #2 was shown in Ahmad Fuad Osman’s groundbreaking 1998 solo exhibition ‘Experiments in Truth’ and formed an important link in his journey from abstract expressionism to semi-abstraction and finally neo-expressionism, showing the fluid movement between genres, styles, and mediums. Kuldip Aasmundsen first saw The Drowning #2 at an auction with Henry Butcher and was drawn to the emotions evoked by Fuad’s neo-expressionist handling of the paint. “I have a great affinity with works which are powerful enough to captivate and draw you in, evoking different levels of emotion. It could be quiet and contemplative, or full of raw energy and passion. The Drowning #2 evoked all these emotions in me,” she says. As the first work she ever acquired at an auction, this 1995 canvas was a monumental move, as she now focuses her collection exclusively on Malaysian contemporary art. “Our Malaysian contemporary artists are on par with international artists. There is something spiritually and culturally inherent with traces of Nusantara imbedded in their souls. Their positive and exciting development, coupled with experimentation, reflects the progression of our society into a developing nation,” she muses.
